In the 20-something years I covered the Lansdale Memorial Day service, for the most part it was always steady - dignified, respectful, well-attended and quite moving. But it is changing - a particular group of veterans is rapidly disappearing, and may be gone for good soon. The Pearl Harbor Veterans are made up of servicemen and women that were actually there on the 'Day of Infamy', but now they are mostly in their nineties and dwindling in numbers.

My neighbor (two doors down) - a Pearl Harbor veteran who also lost a grandson in Iraq - passed away a couple of years ago.

At some point in past Memorial Day ceremonies, at this same time of year at this same park, the Civil War veterans, then the WWI veterans made their final appearances. Now we are getting our last chance to actually meet those that saw a piece of WWII history first-hand.